Transforming San Francisco's Market Street into a thriving civic center

Prototyping public life for long term change

In order to improve transit speed and reliability, as well as prioritize high quality conditions for pedestrians and climate-positive cyclists, Market Street was in need of a cultural transformation. Gehl gathered input from local communities through public hearings, workshops and lectures, and used the results to re-frame the conversation, focused on the creation of a 21st-Century main street, not just a transportation solution. 

In 2015, Gehl called upon designers, artists and makers to develop and test ideas to enliven the sidewalk along Market Street and attract public life. Over three days, 50 prototypes were installed along Market Street and approximately 300,000 people were engaged. These pilot projects allowed people to experience new uses of the street in real-time, and their responses contributed to the ultimate design concept. The new streetscape design, that integrated street life zones, grade separated bicycle lanes, private vehicle access prohibition, improved transit services for buses and streetcars and overall improvements to public space safety and accessibility, was approved by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Board of Directors in 2019. 

As of January 2020, San Francisco’s Market Street finally became car-free — a much anticipated moment that removed private vehicle access from 2.2 miles of Market Street.